1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a latching mechanism for an access door. More particularly, the present invention relates to a latching mechanism for maintaining an access door in an opened orientation.
2. Description of the Background Art
Access doors are frequently mounted within the ground and used to access underground utility areas. Because utility areas are often located in highly trafficked areas, the access doors must be capable of withstanding pedestrian and/or vehicle traffic. Access doors also serve an important security function by preventing unauthorized individuals from entering the utility areas. As a result, access doors must employ a heavy duty construction in order to both support traffic and provide security.
Users entering the utility area must ensure that the access door is fixed in an open position during ingress and egress. Access doors that are not properly secured can be unintentionally closed, thereby injuring the user. Given the substantial weight of typical access doors, these injuries can be substantial.
An example of a prior art vault, or access, door is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,133,074 to Schack. Schack discloses a spring assisted door construction. The door of Schack includes closed, raised, and fully open positions. A first pair of torsion rods are arranged to be loaded when the door is swung down to a closed position from a raised position. A second pair of torsion bars are arranged to be stressed when the door is swung to its fully open position.
Yet another example is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 6,347,818 to Lyons, Sr. Lyons discloses a hold open arm assembly for a non-vertically hinged door. The assembly permits one-handed operation and prevents the door from closing unexpectedly. The assembly utilizes a guide bracket with a guide slot. The assembly further includes a hold open arm having a nut, bolt, bearing, and stop surface at one end. The bearing is adapted to travel within with guide slot. The stop surface cooperates with an angled stop to lock in door in an opened orientation.
Although Schack and Lyons address issues associated with the weight of the door, they nonetheless do not provide an adequate latching mechanism for a hold open arm. The present disclosure is directed to a latching mechanism for a hold open arm in order to prevent unintended closure of the door.